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2016 Fellowship Information

Apply below for the 2016 DiverseScholar SciComm Diversity Travel Fellowship. These awards were created to encourage underrepresented minorities in science journalism/communication to attend the ScienceWriters2016 conference (SciWri16; October 28 - November 1; San Antonio, TX). Deadline to apply is Thursday September 8 at noon PST.

We will only review completed applications with an uploaded CV/resume that describes your journalism/communication experience. Depending upon the number of applicants, preference will be given to 1) professional journalists either currently reporting on “Science, Technology, Engineering, & Math” (STEM), medicine, health, environment, information technology industry, etc, 2) journalists interested in learning about STEM, 3) students/trainees in journalism & communication, and 4) scientists wishing to explore a journalism/communication career. We have funds for at least 3 awards at $1,000 per travel fellowship.

The fellowship judging panel will include Cynthia-Lou Coleman, Tara Haelle, Danielle Lee, and Alberto Roca. Their biosketches can be found on the About page.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What are the fellowship eligibility requirements?
U.S.-based underrepresented minorities in journalism/communication are encouraged to apply especially African-, Hispanic-, and Native-Americans. Applicant must be at least 18 years old by the start of the SciWri conference. Previous award recipients are not eligible to apply except for those designated as Honorable Mentions.

What are the award conditions?
Awardees will be notified by the end of September. Recipients will make their own travel arrangements and submit original receipts for reimbursement after the conference. Recipients will be expected to submit a 500+ word essay on a topic to be determined by Alberto Roca, e.g. ScienceWriters2016 conference experience recap or other assignment, for possible publication in DiverseScholar or other suitable venue.

What do the fellowship monies cover?
The fellowship of $1,000 per person is for an individual’s expenses for attending the ScienceWriters conference. Read logistical information about the 2016 San Antonio event. We estimate that a budget would be the following:

How can I learn more about the event/fellowship?
Prepare for the conference with advice from SciLance and Open Notebook. Learn about the 2014 and 2015 SciComm Diversity awardees below and read their essays.

Contact info
Any questions should be emailed to

Application

Professionals:Clinton Parks@crparks3
Clinton Parks is a Washington, DC-based freelance science writer who writes for AAAS’ ScienceCareers, American Chemical Society’s Axial, and American Physical Society’s Physics Buzz, among others. From November 2003 through April 2006, Parks served as staff writer of AAAS’ Minority Scientists Network, the online network for current and prospective minority scientists. From October 2006 through May 2015, he served as a staff writer and web producer for the trade publication SpaceNews. He has written features, profiles and reports for AAAS’ Minority Scientists Network; written and edited articles for AAAS’ ScienceCareers; developed columns for SpaceNews’ “This Week in Space History”; and written case studies of the work the strategic communications firm BrandEvolve.

Frieda Wiley@Frieda_Wiley
Frieda Wiley, PharmD, CGP, RPh, is a science and medical writer whose experience spans the pharmaceutical industry, community pharmacy, managed care consulting, and the aerospace industry. Her byline includes AARP, Everyday Health, and Arthritis Today. Before receiving her doctorate in pharmacy, Frieda simultaneously earned bachelors’ degrees in biochemistry and Spanish. While completing her undergraduate studies at the University of Texas at Austin, she worked on two research projects — one of which entailed DNA extraction and amplification to map the phylogenetic tree of the Drosophila firefly. Frieda initially began her career as an analytical chemist for a large, privately held aerospace company where she analyzed electroplating and stripping solutions used to overhaul and repair turbine jet engine parts. During pharmacy school, she completed several internships with the Procter & Gamble Company and won second place in the corporation’s annual intern talent show for playing the piano. Frieda has served on the editorial board for the American Association of Consultant Pharmacists and as both Chair and Co-Chair of the American Pharmacists Association’s Medication Management Special Interest Group Telehealth Committee. In 2009, the Regulatory Sciences’ Section of the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists recognized her for her contributions.

Students:Iveliz Martel@liztelmar
Iveliz Martel is a Chilean science journalist who graduated from Texas A&M University’s graduate science communication program in 2016. Her graduate studies were sponsored by the Chilean National Commission for Scientific and Academic Research and the Fulbright Commission. She has pursued mainly radio journalism since 2007, when she received her bachelor’s degree and started working at Cooperativa, one of the most important news radio stations in Chile. In 2015, Iveliz was selected to participate in the NPR Next Generation Radio Project, where she reported on stories on minorities in Minneapolis. The same year, she participated as a science-writing scholar in the National Academies Keck Futures Initiative (NAKFI) conference. Now, she works as correspondent in the United States for Chilean media and recently started doing freelance writing on Latin American science stories for Scientific American-Español. Iveliz is also producing Sala de Situación, a podcast to be launched soon that will provide audiences in Latin America with information on risks and emerging issues, such as the Zika virus, earthquakes, and climate change. Since 2013, she has also been helping the Chilean foundation Más Ciencia to promote science in her country.

So Hae (Irene) Park@s_park89
So Hae (Irene) Park is a Human Genetics doctoral student at the University of Michigan. Her thesis project focuses on what causes genome instability — an accumulation of mutations in cells and one of the hallmarks for cancer — and how it can be avoided. Outside lab, she explores her enthusiasm in science writing by acting as an editor-in-chief and a blog writer for MiSciWriters, a student organization focused on science writing for the general public. She is also a news reporter for The Michigan Daily, a student newspaper at her institution, and writes mostly about science, technology, and medicine. This past summer, Irene was one of the senior news editors for The Daily, advising research, hospital, and campus life beats. As part of her job as an editor, she advised and edited stories about the lack of gender and racial diversity in engineering and the diversity of research topics in medicine, engineering, and business. Currently, she is striving to advance diversity in the two groups; she acts as a liaison between MiSciWriters and The Daily and actively recruits students from different backgrounds to write for MiSciWriters blog.

Group photo from the ScienceWriters2015 conference including 10 Diversity Travel Fellows (funded by the National Association of Science Writers), 3 mentors (Tara Haelle, Maggie Koerth-Baker, and Matthew Francis), and DiverseScholar Board member Cynthia-Lou Coleman (far right).

Professionals:Eunice Cofie@eunicecofie
Eunice Nuekie Cofie is the Founder, Chief Executive Officer, and Chief Chemist of Nuekie, an innovative health and beauty company for people of color. Her company has garnered many awards such as 2013 Tallahassee Chamber of Commerce Start Up Business of the Year, 2013 Tallahassee/Leon County Technology Commercialization Grant award, and 2012 Access Florida Business Plan Competition. Eunice has been named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum in 2012, Forbes 20 Youngest Power Women in Africa list, NewU Entrepreneurs/Ford Foundation Fellow, Florida Commission on the Status of Women’s Florida Achievement Award, Young African Leaders in International Affairs Top 35 Under 35 in Science and Technology list, Scientific American’s “What a Scientist Looks Like” list, 2012 Golden A.C.E Science and Technology award winner, and Tallahassee Democrat’s “25 Women You Need to Know in Tallahassee”. Eunice is a graduate student at the University of Cincinnati studying Pharmaceutical Sciences with a specialization in Cosmetic Science. She also holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry/molecular biology from Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, and a certificate in Global Leadership and Public Policy for the 21st Century from Harvard Kennedy School of Government Executive Education program. She has also completed the Kauffman Foundation FASTRAC Entrepreneurs Program for Scientists. The entrepreneur legend-in-training has been featured on Essence.com and in Forbes, Madam Noire, Florida Trend, Tallahassee Woman, and Ghana Television.

Maria Pontes Ferreira
Maria Pontes Ferreira, PhD, RD is an assistant professor at Wayne State University in the Department of Nutrition and Food Science. She received her Bachelor of Science degree in Exercise Science at UMass, Amherst. Her Master of Science degree in Exercise & Sport Nutrition is from TWU, Denton. Next she trained at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, to become a Registered Dietician. Her continued interest in the field led her to obtain a PhD from Baylor University in Waco, TX in Exercise, Nutrition, & Preventive Health. Prior to obtaining her tenure track appointment at WSU, she completed a 3-year NIH IRACDA postdoctoral fellowship at Haskell Indian Nations University and the University of Kansas. She is an enthusiastic science writer, and loves to engage students in the process of writing and publishing.

Luis Quevedo@luis_quevedo
Journalist, scientist, and Spanish filmmaker. Luis Quevedo has a degree in Biotechnology from the Autonomous University of Barcelona and Master in Communication at Pompeu Fabra University. His audiovisual work has been internationally recognized for its quality and innovation, most notably the documentary film “Searching for the first European”. He has pioneered TV and digital formats like “Tres14” and “Science Friday en Español”. Luis is now directing and hosting the Spanish language, international, daily TV show on science and technology, “CST”, available across the US and the Americas on NTN24. Until recently, he was producing “The Social Gradient Podcast” for the eponymous website and non-profit, a project wherein he brought science and health news of special relevance to minorities in the US. Luis is a regular science and health contributor to the Spanish newspaper El Mundo and the popular website Naukas.com. As a speaker and coach, Luis evangelizes on the key role of communication in the present and future development of science and scientific culture in the Spanish-speaking world.

Emiliano Rodriguez Mega@mapache_rm
Emiliano Rodríguez Mega is a Mexican science journalist based in Mexico City. After graduating from the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, he realized that lab work was not for him and switched gears to writing. He has focused on covering Latin American science stories, especially those that have certain social impact. His work has been published in Science, SciDev.Net, and QUO magazine (Mexico). He also co-founded Historias Cienciacionales, a nonprofit organization dedicated to communicating science to Spanish-speaking audiences, and has produced science podcasts for the Mexican Radio Institute. Emiliano reported on the 2015 AAAS conference in San Jose, California, as one of 9 recipients of an NASW travel grant.

Frances Kai-Hwa Wang@fkwang
Frances Kai-Hwa Wang is a second-generation Chinese American from California who now divides her time between Michigan and Hawai’i. She writes about Asian, Asian American, Pacific Islander, race, diversity, civil rights, and cultural issues; and, she is interested in looking more at the intersection between science and culture so as to better write about some of the most pressing issues facing Asia and the Pacific and the most precariously-perched communities there. She is a contributor for NBC News Asian America, AAPIVoices.com, NewAmericaMedia.org, ChicagoIsTheWorld.org, JACL’s PacificCitizen.org, InCultureParent.com, and HuffPostLive. She was previously the arts and culture contributing editor of IMDiversity.com Asian American Village, and she wrote a nationally syndicated column, “Adventures in Multicultural Living,” about living between and among cultures and those moments of resonance that cut across cultures and move us all. She teaches Asian/Pacific Islander American Studies at the University of Michigan; and, she speaks nationally on Asian American issues. She has published three chapbooks of prose poetry, been included in several anthologies and art exhibitions, and created a multimedia artwork for a Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center Indian American Heritage Project. She has a weakness for a well-crafted argument and a lyrical turn of phrase.

Students:Kaleb Hill@FitnessFleetCEO
Kaleb J. Hill is a nursing student at Delgado Community College and the president/CEO of FitnessFleet, Inc., a telehealth provider and biotechnology company based in New Orleans, LA. Mr. Hill is certified nursing assistant and community health worker who has worked with persons living with chronic illnesses in the clinical setting, as well as, in the public heath community for over nine years. Previously, Hill served as chair of the volunteer committee for the American Diabetes Association (Alabama/Mississippi chapter) for the Tour de Cure 2011. He currently serves as a community advisory board member at Tulane University’s Prevention Research Center, Patient Advisory Board member for the Louisiana Trial To Reduce Obesity in Primary Care at Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Medical Fitness Network member, and the Ninth Ward Coalition. He is the Principal Investigator for a type 2 diabetes study, in partnership with Xavier University of Louisiana College of Pharmacy Center for Minority Health and Health Disparities Research Education, The Juxtopia Group, Inc., Valentine Medical Center, Prevention Research Center at Tulane University, that focuses on the prevention of type 2 diabetes among African-Americans in Louisiana using mobile health technology that he is currently developing. For more information about his work in the community visit www.FitnessFleetInc.com

Sonjiala Hotchkiss@STEM_Punk
Sonjiala Hotchkiss is a master’s student in the chemistry and biochemistry department at the University of California, San Diego. She earned a BA in history from the University of New Orleans and a post-graduate diploma in law from the University of Law in London. For the last two years she has conducted research funded by the National Institutes of Health as part of the Bridges to Baccalaureate Program at San Diego Mesa College. As part of her research, Ms. Hotchkiss synthesizes esters of vitamin C that may prove useful as cancer therapeutics. She presented her research at the 2014 ABRCMS Conference in San Antonio, TX; and, she will present her research in Washington, DC as part of the SACNAS Conference in October 2015. Ms. Hotchkiss has won awards for her journalism from the San Diego chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists and the San Diego Press Club. She created an online science magazine at STEMPunk.com where she publishes profiles of students and scientists, study tips, and science-related articles with the goal of encouraging members of underrepresented groups to pursue study and careers in STEM fields.

Alexandra Landry@XdelCarpio
Alexandra Landry is a chemical engineering Ph.D. candidate at the University of California in Berkeley. Her work in the lab has exposed her to research in genetics, polymer chemistry, and nanoparticle synthesis and characterization. She has also interned in the research and development department of several companies ranging in focus from consumer goods, to pharmaceuticals and petrochemicals. Her desire to continue exploring new areas of science and follow her passion for writing has brought her to science writing. At Berkeley, she is a writer and editor for the Berkeley Science Review, a graduate student publication focused on innovative research at Berkeley. She is also actively involved in the Latino Association for Graduate Students in Engineering and Sciences, whose goals are to promote the recruitment and retention of Hispanic graduate students on campus. After graduation she plans to pursue a career in science writing.

Devi Shastri@DeviShastri
Devi (pronounced “Davy” like Jones or Crockett) Shastri is currently a junior at Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She is majoring in both biomedical sciences and journalism. As a lover of science and communication, you may find her crisscrossing all over campus to get from microbiology to media law class. She also works as a projects/investigative reporter, and formerly was the health and science reporter for the Marquette Wire. She is an intern for Marquette’s O’Brien Fellow, Miranda Spivack, a former editor and reporter for the Washington Post. She is working with Spivack on a project pertaining to state and local government secrecy. Last summer, she interned at the Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service as a general assignment reporter covering events and issues in Milwaukee neighborhoods. She was also featured on Milwaukee Public Radio’s Lake Effect.

Ramin Skibba@raminskibba
Ramin Skibba is excited to pursue writing full-time, as he is now a science communication student at the University of California, Santa Cruz. As a physics and astronomy researcher and lecturer, he previously worked in San Diego, Tucson, southwest Germany, and Pittsburgh, where he earned his PhD. Over the past few years, he has actively engaged in numerous public outreach and policy advocacy programs in southern California and Washington, DC, with an emphasis on diversity in science and science writing. He has written for the Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy and elsewhere about gender and racial inequality at all levels of the pipeline and about the hidden effects of unconscious bias. As a half-Iranian, he has also written about the struggles of Iranian students and scientists. He is now focused on science writing, and he plans to continue playing a role in advancing diversity.

2014 Diversity Travel Fellows (funded by the National Association of Science Writers) with Danielle Lee (far left) at the ScienceWriters2014 conference.

Crystal Garner@shesagarner
Crystal Garner is a senior at The University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, MS, studying broadcast journalism and computer science. She has formerly worked/interned for NPR, NASA, The New York Times, Voice of America, USA TODAY, and the National Association of Black Journalists, among others. Post college, Garner hopes to work with both broadcast and web production in the media industry. She is the 2014 recipient of the Society of American Business Editors & Writers Benita Newton Minority Journalism Award, 2013 recipient of the Investigative Reporters & Editors James Bennett Scholarship and a 2013 recipient of a NASA Space Grant. Website: shesagarner.com

Ivan Gonzalez@GonzalezIvanF
Ivan Fernando Gonzalez is a Colombian-Peruvian writer who lives in Richland, Eastern Washington. Recently, he traded an academic life that included walking on top of molten rocks, training sharks, and dealing with keyboards covered with capsaicin (the pungent substance of chilly peppers) for the more adventurous life of a freelance science writer. He writes in English and Spanish for local and international audiences, and he also spends some time trying to build communities on Twitter. You can find him at @GonzalezIvanF (English) and @SalsaDeCiencia (Spanish). He also likes to take pictures with his cell phone and takes care of a pre-schooler that is always two steps ahead of him. You can find his writings, community projects, and pictures at www.IvanFGonzalez.com.

Terri Hansen@TerriHansen
Ms. Terri Hansen (Native American, Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska) is a journalist covering the science and environment beat for the national Indian Country Today Media Network, as well as environmental magazines. Ms. Hansen’s focus is the environment, environmental health, and earth and climate sciences as pertains to Native and Indigenous communities. (See clips at Muckrack.) She hails from Portland, Oregon, and has lived in a number of natural areas of the Pacific Northwest. She earned her undergraduate degree in communications from Portland State University. She is the recipient of fellowships from the National Press Foundation, the Society of Environmental Journalists, the Association of Health Care Journalists, and the Earth Journalism Network.

Jacqueline Howard@JacqEHoward
Jacqueline Howard is a science associate editor for The Huffington Post and host/producer of HuffPost Science’s “Talk Nerdy To Me” video series. She appears weekly on HuffPost Live, recently appeared on MSNBC’s newscast, and was selected to participate in The White House’s “We the Geeks: Women Role Models” initiative. Previously, she served as an editor at AOL’s local news company, Patch, where she spearheaded the “Patch of Nature” reporting project. As a published writer and television producer, Howard has produced content for USAToday.com, MTV Networks, CBS News Productions and WCPO-TV. She holds a master’s degree in journalism from the University of Southern California and a bachelor’s degree in communication studies from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor. Website: www.jacqueline-howard.com

Kunmi Sobowalemdlitt.wordpress.com
Kunmi Sobowale is a Doctor of Medicine candidate at the University of Chicago interested in health care disparities. His work on mental health and STEM education and has been featured in USA Today, Health Affairs, KevinMD, and Primary Care Progress Notes. He co-founded a website, “Day in the Life Project”, showcasing the personal narratives of people of color and women in various professional careers to provide role models and a career guide for adolescents. He also conceived and organized Science & Technology: Emerging Professions Underrepresented Professions (STEP UP) Conference to inspire the next generation of women and minority leaders in science and technology. He has explored mental health in Japan, Hong Kong, mainland China, and Vietnam. His education includes Stanford Inter-University Center for Japanese Studies and Yale University (BA: Behavioral Neuroscience).

2016

2014 - 2015

National Association of Science Writers
Certain activities were funded in full/in part by a grant from the National Association of Science Writers. Reference to any specific commercial product, process, or service does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement of or recommendation by the National Association of Science Writers, and any views and opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect those of the National Association of Science Writers.